Final answer:
HCOOH molecules are expected to engage in hydrogen bonding, dipole-dipole attractions, and London dispersion forces due to the presence of a hydrogen atom bonded to an electronegative oxygen atom and the molecule's permanent dipole moment.
Step-by-step explanation:
The types of intermolecular forces expected between HCOOH (formic acid) molecules include hydrogen bonding, dipole-dipole attractions, and London dispersion forces. Formic acid, with its hydrogen directly bonded to an oxygen atom, has the capability to engage in hydrogen bonding, which is a strong type of dipole-dipole interaction where a hydrogen atom is bonded to a highly electronegative atom such as oxygen and interacts with a lone pair of electrons on a neighboring molecule. In addition to hydrogen bonds, formic acid molecules exhibit dipole-dipole interactions because the molecule has a permanent dipole moment due to the difference in electronegativity between hydrogen, carbon, and oxygen atoms. Lastly, all molecules, including HCOOH, exhibit London dispersion forces, which are temporary dipole interactions caused by fluctuations in electron distribution.